Two things to take away from this well-written article. It is important for critics of the Zionist movement and of Israel (the nation-state) to always bear in mind that the Jewish people are very diverse in both their backgrounds and their views of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. No single entity, specifically the Israeli government or army, speaks on behalf of all Jewish people. The second takeaway is being on the lookout for coded language that guises itself as political rhetoric leveled against Israel the state but, in reality, the subtext is covertly anti-Semitic. In place of verbally attacking "the Jews" some people may state "the Zionists" or reference a global Zionist conspiracy theory. Zionism is a specific movement within Judaism advocating for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the ancestral land of Judea/Israel/Canaan/Palestine (or as the Romans called the region, the Levant). Considering these valid points, it must be said that it is okay to criticize the state of Israel and specific actions it has taken against Palestine. But, when doing so, critics must be careful in their choice of words so as not to accidentally encourage anti-Semitic ideas. It is important to note that some Israeli Jews, and some other Arab Jews, disapprove of Israel's human rights violations but still might support having a homeland of their own. It is also worth noting that a person can be a Zionist without condoning the current government and military forces of Israel. One can be a Zionist and pro-Palestinian. In being critical, it is important to monitor the passions and anger that may arise, and not paint the world in black and white. There is always nuance. And there is enough anti-Semitism in the world without liberals who are pro-Palestinian unintentionally adding any more fan to the flames.
THE SIX-DAY WAR increased Israel’s territory threefold. The “borders of Auschwitz” were gone; the vulnerable nine-mile narrow waist acquired a thick cuirass with the mountains of the West Bank. Israel soon annexed East Jerusalem with some surrounding land; it did the same with the Golan Heights in 1981.
Anyone who thinks they have a solution to dividing up Israel into a land for both Palestinians and Israelis should read this article, because it is basically impossible. It seems that both Palestinians and Israelis tried to claim as much land as they could for their own during the second half of the twentieth century. However, they didn’t seem to have a long term plan because basically none of the territories are autonomously Palestinian or Israeli. There would be no way to divide the country without displacing millions of people. Jerusalem itself is even more of a mess because it is divided between Jews, Muslims, Christians and Armenians. There would be no way to grant full control of Jerusalem to one group without causing major conflict. The very last part of this article describes what both Israelis and Palestinians believe qualify them for greater power in the territory. Both believe that whoever has a higher population should be entitled to more control. The problem is that Palestians calculate that their population is about to be equal to the Israelis, but the Israelis believe the birth rate of the Orthodox Jews is high enough to keep their population larger. It’s pretty hard to tell which group is correct because they are both very biased on the matter. The settlement patterns and the stubbornness of both the Israelis and the Palestinians leave little hope that this conflict will be solved anytime soon.
This article is about Hijabs and it talks about the religious aspect of Hijabs versus the cultural aspect. It states that the hijab is a sign of modesty, which is not a strictly Muslim ideology, but is addressed in many religions. It also talks about how the hijab is not directly mentioned in the Quran. It states that the hijab is almost as much a cultural symbol instead of a religious one and talks about countries with laws about hijabs and how women should dress.
Hijab is the expression of a concept of modesty. It is not specific to one religion, nor is it specific to one region. This expression of modesty is encouraged, but not clearly defined, in Islam's holy texts; rather, it is informed by personal or cultural notions of what it means to be modest. Hijab's association with extreme or radical Islam has led to heated debates in Western nations about whether or not it is acceptable for people to express hijab, with many people citing "national/public security" as a reason to ban certain coverings.
The geography of the hijab is important for Westerners to understand. Only two countries, Iran and Saudi Arabia, require women to dress by the strict standards of hijab. The vast majority of Middle Eastern, North African, and Muslim countries around the world do not have a legal dress code for women. Some laws and cultural traditions encourage women to dress modestly. Other countries like Tunisia, Turkey, and Syria (all predominantly Muslim) had laws to restrict women from wearing the hijab in order to be more secular and modern. Many other countries, like Pakistan and Jordan, do not have any laws on the book concerning if women should or should not wear a hijab. These countries understand that it is a personal choice regarding privacy, reputation, and personal faith. Like many religious precepts, the concept of hijab is open to interpretation. As a result, a Westerner can safely assume that having a large Muslim population, or a significant number of Muslims operating in a government, will not lead to a takeover of Sharia law or oppressive fundamentalist codes of behavior. Instead of being afraid of the unknown and making assumptions about entire societies, Westerners should find out more and be exposed to how diverse and broad differing cultures and societies can be.
One of the driest countries on Earth now makes more freshwater than it needs
Driven by necessity, Israel is learning to squeeze more out of a drop of water than any country on Earth; researchers have pioneered new techniques in drip irrigation, water treatment and desalination. “The Middle East is drying up,” says Osnat Gillor, a professor at the Zuckerberg Institute who studies the use of recycled wastewater on crops. “The only country that isn’t suffering acute water stress is Israel.” That water stress has been a major factor in the turmoil tearing apart the Middle East, but Bar-Zeev believes that Israel’s solutions can help its parched neighbors, too — and in the process, bring together old enemies in common cause.
This connects to the physical geography of Israel as it was once incredibly dry, facing a decade long drought. This ruined the agriculture sector of their economy as well, along with changing the people's way of life. However, desalination has saved the country, and Israel really had no other choice. Instead, the country is now a water giant, and has an overabundance through new technologies.
"Without trying to defend or absolve U.S. policy, then, it is worth stepping back to ask what shared historical experiences might have left these four countries — Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen — particularly at risk of violent collapse. The following maps help highlight how, at various points over the past century, historical circumstances conspired, in an often self-reinforcing way, to bolster the stability of some states in the region while undermining that of others."
These maps are not cartographically inspiring, but the it's the historical and political insight that makes them valuable. The goal of this set of maps is to find some underlying causal reasons for political stability(or more importantly instability) in the Middle East. These four maps focus on these key issues:
From the western perspective, it's easier just to assume the Middle East is constantly in conflict purely out of their own fault. However, the story is more complicated than that and much of the conflict in the area is due to involvement from the west. These four maps show the different factors that impact the countries in the Middle East. The first one shows that countries that were fully formed states for longer, tend to be more stable. This makes sense because they haven't had outside influence for longer and have had more time to create stronger governments. Looking at just this map, it seems like Iran and Egypt should be more stable than Saudi Arabia today. However, this map doesn't tell the whole story. The second map shows the types of colonial rule that each country was under in recent history. Turkey was the only country in the region that was able to stay fully independent. Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Israel are some of the countries that were under full colonization. Not surprisingly, the struggles they had to gain their independence still effects the stability of these countries today. This shows that the involvement from outsiders has had negative, long-term effects on the area and that the west is not free from blame of what is happening in the Middle East. The third map differentiates between the countries that changed regimes after World War II and those that did not. There is a correlation between which countries experienced the change and the countries that are the least stable today. The final map shows which countries were pro-western, pro-Soviet, or shifted alignments during the Cold War. Once again the outside influence of both the west and in this case the Soviet Union, lead to further divide in the region. The history and shifting geography of the Middle East in just the last hundred years helps to give insight to how the region has become as conflicted in some countries, yet stable in others.
"Two archaeologists, who recently published their findings in the American Schools of Oriental Research, used Google Earth satellite images and drone photography to identify the outline of an enormous monument buried beneath sand and time at the UNESCO World Heritage site in Jordan." --Motherboard
(Middle East) Using modern technology, archaeologists have discovered a new monument hidden underground in Petra. The find, dated around 150 B.C., is thought to be a ceremonial site with two platforms, pottery. columns, and a staircase carved out of stone. It is amazing that there are still new finds like this in the 21st century, but the history of the Middle East is so incredibly old, with so many extinct civilizations, that archaeologists will probably keep making new breakthroughs.
Physical geography can be really cool as understanding the current land helps to also understand the past. Researchers finding new monuments like this in Petra shows the importance of knowing the land around you, or someplace important like where the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
War, sectarian violence, and famine have forced more than 50 million people from their homes—the largest number of displaced people since World War II.
Skuuppilehdet's insight:
Here are two excellent ESRI StoryMaps about the Syrian refugee crisis; these are two very good examples of a great web maps.
I read articles about the Syrian war and watched this film and I got to tell you it sure is confusing. The picture on one of the websites that really disturbed me is the father holding his lifeless 8 or 9 year old daughter in his arms. I have a 9 year old daughter and it was her birthday on that day I saw the picture. Sometimes it is better emotionally to be ignorant about what is going on in the world.
Syrian civil war has escalated into a proxy wars between many nations that all have different goals in mind. It all started from the Arab Spring and is still on-going because there are many sides taking place and none of them wants to back down. Mainly due to the emerge of the Islamic State that cause a shift in the war of fighting a terrorism organization to fighting the different factions within Syria.
An interesting and well written breakdown of the Syrian war and its local, regional and global factors that have caused the escalation to this point. It should however be pointed out that some of the information within the video is actually wrong. The United Nations did a investigation and report regarding the use of chemical weapons and found ti was the rebels not Assad who had used them. Furthermore it leaves out some reports from the initial protests in Syria that some of them were armed with weapons and fired on police (suggesting that instead of one side it was mutual escalation). Plus much of the fighting in Syria is also sectarian with Shiites backing Assad and the Sunnis backing Assad's opposition (prior global intervention). If these pieces of information were corrected in addition to talking about the Kurdish predicament a bit more along with the origins of ISIS the video would be perfect. So in a way I suppose the video kind of left out important local geographic details that influenced the regional and global ones.
Saudi Arabia produces much of its electricity by burning oil, a practice that most countries abandoned long ago, reasoning that they could use coal and natural gas instead and save oil for transportation, an application for which there is no mainstream alternative. Most of Saudi Arabia’s power plants are colossally inefficient, as are its air conditioners, which consumed 70 percent of the kingdom’s electricity in 2013. Although the kingdom has just 30 million people, it is the world’s sixth-largest consumer of oil.Now, Saudi rulers say, things must change. Their motivation isn’t concern about global warming; the last thing they want is an end to the fossil-fuel era. Quite the contrary: they see investing in solar energy as a way to remain a global oil power. The Saudis burn about a quarter of the oil they produce—and their domestic consumption has been rising at an alarming 7 percent a year, nearly three times the rate of population growth.
A great article discussing energy reform in Saudi Arabia. Another good source of information about some of the reforms being implemented in the kingdom can be found at this link:
The irony here is palpable- if the Saudis overtake the US in terms of solar power, I think I'd lose hope for our future. The most infamous oil-state on the planet has recognized that its costly domestic consumption of its vast oil supplies is hurting its profits, and it would rather seek an alternative energy supply to fuel its own nation so that it can sell more oil to foreign investors. The logic here is actually very sound- Saudi Arabia knows that there is money to be made by cutting down their own oil consumption, and even if the world sees how successful they are in their own adoption of solar power as their main source of electricity, most of the West won't be willing to make the same transition when there's so much Saudi oil to buy. Everyone wins- except American consumers, of course. Oh, and the planet- the burning of fossil fuels is a serious problem our generation must tackle if we are to minimize the damages created by man-made global warming. In the short-term, nothing is set in stone, as we have no idea how successful the Saudis will be in their attempt to harvest solar power on such a large scale. However, the implications of this move is huge- I can only imagine what an influx of Saudi oil on the market would do for US gas prices.
Citizens of Syria have experienced difficult times since their country entered into a period of continual war in the past few decades. People migrate to Europe in demand of better life for their families. All begin with a plan and a &helper,& called trafficker or coyote in Mexico, and money to cross few borders and be able to live life free from war. Although, with countries such as Egypt, Lybia, Lebanon, Turkey, and Greece, with a massive migrations, tough economies, lack of jobs, nothing and no one is safe. However, Europe is very attractive in terms of quality life and safety to raise families. Furthermore, to be able to survive during this migration transition, many risks are involved and even in some cases, killings. Immigrants migrate by boat, truck, train, and sometimes even walking. Day or night immigrants keep moving and pay high prices to be transported to the next point. It takes them weeks, months, and even years to reach thier final destinations. This is the same for those immigrants in Mexico and U.S.
this is a virtual stimulator showing the struggle of a Syrian migrant, proving that one risky decision can be detrimental for these people. this can be related to the migration unit
Most of the world's major religions are made up of multiple sects or denominations, and Islam is no different. Islam's two major sects are the Sunnis and the Shiites, and the division and interplay between the two is a major factor in the geopolitics of the Middle East. How well do you understand Sunni and Shiite Islam? Take our quiz and find out!
After taking this class about Political Islam I thought I knew about Sunni and Shiite Islam. Taking this quiz I definitely mixed up a lot of the information. It seems like it would be simple to understand the differences and the similarities, but they are so parallel its easy to get the information mixed up.
"Muslim Extremists!" "Death to militant Islam!" "Muslims are terrorists!" These cries are often heard from conservative factions of the United States, who are a lot more eager to blindly hate than they are to learn about the lives of the same people they want dead. Islam encompasses some 1.3 billion believers, and there are significant deviations in both the faith and its application among such a wide population of believers. Before this exam, I knew about the Sunni majority and the Shia minority currently in conflict in the Middle East, but my understanding of the distinction between the two faiths was vague at best. I also did not recognize that each of the two main branches are then further split into different denominations, much in the same way that Christianity is today within our own country. As different and "other" we try and make the Middle East out to be, they are not that different in their religious practices (and their fanatics ruining the name of the religion for everyone else) than many conservatives would like them to be. I definitely enjoyed taking this exam, particularly within the context of everything I have been learning about with what is happening in Syria. I had no idea Assad was not just a regular Shia, but instead a member of a much smaller, stricter denomination. Learning about this region has definitely been an eye-opening experience for me, in the sense that I know a lot less about the world than I thought I knew.
I am not very educated on the religion but I do know from my notes in class that religion is what stops Iraq from unifying. That country is made up of three religions Muslims , Sunnis and Shiites.
If you want to understand the Islamic State, better known as ISIS, the first thing you have to know about them is that they are not crazy. Murderous adherents to a violent medieval ideology, sure. But not insane.
This may be a little off topic but with a President like Obama, how could America even try to stop ISIS alone? That man has made a fool of our country! I don't think ISIS would self-destruct on its own; it will continue to grow and become more powerful because people are afraid.
Like much of the Middle East, ISIS is shrouded in myth. To many Americans, they are just a band of savage lunatics who want to chop peoples heads off. In reality they are not that insane. The violence they commit is calculated. "It is targeted to weaken their enemies and strengthen ISIS' hold on territory, in part by terrorizing the people it wishes to rule over". They are driven by radical ideology, but they do have an ultimate goal in mind. They want to rule territory and form their own radical empire. Violence is a tool to achieve that aim. The rest of this article describes eight other myths commonly associated with ISIS. This article does an excellent job of breaking down commonly held assumptions of ISIS.
though this comes from Vox (a heavily biased news source) this article brings up some good points about Isis. Though they are extremely violent and due call for a strict adherent to Sharia law, they make some exceptions in order to accomplish the conquest they desire. These attacks they have on regions and the way they use there influence to control is a very calculated move, hard to be that calculated and be insane.
The state of emergency in place since last summer’s coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan resumes today for another three months, following a decision by the country’s security council. Emergency rule has now been extended four times. Over its course, more than 50,000 people have been arrested, and twice as many sacked from government jobs, including over 7,000 dismissals over the past week. On the anniversary of the coup Mr Erdogan said emergency rule would lapse only when “we no longer need to fight terrorism”, and vowed to reinstate the death penalty and “rip off” the coup plotters’ heads. Using the crisis as cover, the government has already locked up leading Kurdish politicians; the secular opposition may be next. Mr Erdogan accuses its leader, who recently led the biggest protest in years, of siding with Turkey’s enemies. The failed coup increasingly resembles a successful one—for the other side.
I don't know if this state of emergency is a ploy by the Turkish government or if this a for safety reason. It's weird how a state of emergency is still in effect even after a failed coup that happened over a year ago. The last documented terrorist attack against Turkey was the 1st of January in 2017.The President of Turkey has stated that while they fight terrorism that the state of emergency will be in place. Which is weird because terrorism is a multi-compound thought process and is not easy to defeat.While in the midst of all these people are being purged from jobs and arrested for various reasons. It seems like the government is using the state of emergency has an excuse to element people from their jobs without cause.
"After four-plus years of fighting, Syria's war has killed at least hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions. And, though it started as a civil war, it's become much more than that. It's a proxy war that has divided much of the Middle East, and has drawn in both Russia and the United States. To understand how Syria got to this place, it helps to start at the beginning and watch it unfold."
The war in Syria has been devastating to Syrian's inhabitants. After six years of this conflict it has become a mess and is divided into four sections or groups, all backed different foreign backers. The backers have know become so confused on who there fighting for and what there fighting for, that is how messy this war has gotten. The use of chemical warfare has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions. As to why there is a major Syrian refugee crisis. The conflict started as an internal war against Assad and rebels. This small civil war has know turned into a global conflict. I wish I could say what foreign countries are backing who and why but the lines are very blurred and there has been many back stabbing. All these foreign powers entering this war has established Syria as a great power dispute. The Assad and rebels conflict also brew the other two sections that are fighting in this region the Kurds who want their own nation. The Kurds are the largest cultural and ethnic group without a country. The entrance of the Kurds in the fighting brought in more foreign countries to either support their efforts or squash the Kurds hopes of obtaining a nation of there own. Then you have ISIS who formed as a branch out of the original rebels because there was an internal dispute. Overall this war is bloody and will never end if all these four sections cant come to an agreement. If there is no determination for peace there will never be peace.
Hearing about the news in Syria is usually tragic and frustrating. It is also equally confusing and this video helped to sort out its causes and important transformations over time. Even with the video's succinct explanation, the conflict is still a quagmire to understand. The fighting began during the 2011 Arab Spring when peaceful Syrian protesters were gunned down by Assad's military forces. Instead of backing down and caving into the violent repression, the Syrian civilians retaliated with small arms fire and were joined by Syrian army defectors. The now belligerent protesters formed their own rebel army, causing Syria to erupt into a civil war. Then Islamic extremists, including a terrorist groups, joined the rebels. Countries like Turkey and Jordan began funding and arming the rebels while Iran - a Shiite country - provided support to Assad. Appalled by the out-of-control death toll, the United States began training and arming the rebels - some of whom were from Al Qaeda! Assad's chemical weapons attack escalated U.S. involvement while Russia came to the side of Assad. Putin most likely supports Assad to maintain its lease of a key geographic asset - a warm-water naval base -while also discouraging internal rebellion. At some point a group of ethnic Kurds in northern Syria succeeded (Putin's fear) and began attacking Assad. But, Turkey started attacking the Kurds! Then in 2014 ISIS broke away from Al Qaeda and started attacking the Kurds and the rebels prompting the U.S. to redirect its focus away from the Assad regime. This has to be the messiest conflict in modern history and is entirely defined by proxy wars. Because the war is so convoluted and complicated, there is no end in sight. The relentless destruction over years has caused millions of refugees to flee to Europe because it is the closest stable place to Syria. This unprecedented wave of migrations will surely transform Europe and cripple Syria in the long run.
Syria's war has gotten crazier and crazier and doesn't seem like there is a end in sight. The insane cross fighting between outside countries and the inner working of independence inside Syria itself is still an issue. A local protest has turned into an international fight against top countries of US and Russia.
One of President Trump's first acts as President was the "Muslim Ban" as it was so often referred to. In this article it explains the changes that the ban has gone through since it was first blocked and the differences between it and what the Obama administration did with it polices. We can also look at Europe and debate its policies as well on immigration and what polices they have enacted over the past few years as well. This is a hotly debated issue between both parties right now and into the future, not just an issue, but an issue I am sure will be debated in elections ahead. When looking at this issue we have to look beyond what the main political points will be and try use some of of our own sense on the issue. With so much upheaval in this area is it safe to take in people from it? It is a legit question one must pose especially with the increase in terrorist attacks over the past few years. Could the US or countries in Europe have avoided with a better process? Who really knows for sure. It is in everyone's best interest to make this area more livable for its current citizens. Since that would calm everyone on the immigration issue. How do major world powers get involved in this situation then? That becomes the issue as the the last elections in the US and other countries alike have pushed for more in house or in country work as opposed to overseas involvement. This will not be the last time this comes up, just wait til 2018 and I am sure in 2020 elections.
The United States is already taking some steps to roll back the Islamic State (ISIS) and restrict its resources and recruits, including airstrikes, armin
Since this video was made we have already had a Presidential election and policy made to deal with some of these key issues. Within the past year US policy (some continuation from the Obama Era) under President Trump has been to destroy ISIS and for the most part it has be done. ISIS has been displaced from the region, however that does not mean that the fighting in Syria has stopped. There are still many issues in the area and one that will not simply be rectified within a few years, this is a battle that we will see repeat over and over again. Much like Afghanistan, this area is one with much upheaval and when one power goes away another one rises and new problems can arise. It is an area in which, like the video states a major conundrum. How can we support one place and not make a country like Turkey angry (the Kurd's example from the video)? So one could say well just stay out of the whole area, while that can make sense it is to important as a world leader (especially America) to not be involved in both a key geographical area for Russia and human rights area. While there is no doubt there has been improvements in the last year, it is the same story in the Middle East, what is the end game? How do we get to the finish line and does anyone have the right answers.
The video was published before the last presidential election, but some of the information in it is still accurate regarding the crisis in Syria. For example this video talks about how Syrian refugees are fleeing from ISIS to other nations in order to escape them. There are many refugees being displaced because of the violence ISIS is causing in the middle east. Refugees that need a place to escape to flee to neighboring countries to get away from ISIS. There is still some debate in America about whether or not Syrian refugees should be allowed to enter the U.S. as well. Ultimately something needs to be done about the terror havoc ISIS is reeking in the middle east.
"The invasion of Iraq was supposed to turn the country into a democracy that posed no threat to the United States, or the rest of the world. Thirteen years later, Iraq has collapsed into three warring states. A third of the country is controlled by ISIS, who have also taken huge amounts of territory in Syria. VICE correspondent Ben Anderson gains exclusive access to the three front lines in Iraq, where Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish forces are fighting for their lives. Anderson visits with the Russian military forces in Syria, meets captured ISIS fighters in Kurdistan, and interviews US policymakers about how the situation in Iraq spun out of control."
"The curriculum 'Empire, Republic, Democracy: A History of Turkey' traces the final years of the Ottoman Empire, the birth of the Turkish Republic, and contemporary issues in Turkey. Learn more at www.choices.edu/turkey "
Turkey has always been a country that I find interesting. So many amazing architectural structures and landscapes. I have two friends from high school who work there in the peace corps. I asked them what it's like and they couldn't really describe it. They said it isn't really Arabic but it certainly isn't western either. This was a good introductory video on the area.
This video is helpful in understanding the factors that have made Turkey what it is today. Their physical location has impacted much of their history, as they have been centrally located around various empires for centuries. Turkey is complex because it doesn’t fit the mold of being a solely Middle Eastern country or a solely European country, it has elements of both regions. Up until World War I, Turkey leaned more towards being an Islamic, more traditionally Middle Eastern country. However at this point they adapted many European ways in order to retain their power as an empire. Another point about Turkey is that the area that they are confined to now has only been so for about a century. However, the Turks as a group of people have a very long and rich history. Turkey is one of those countries that is difficult to fully understand or categorize because it is a multitude of cultures. This is presenting a problem currently in Turkey as their government is being challenged. It is yet to be seen whether the Turkish people want a more democratic style of government like that of European countries or a more authoritarian government like their Middle Eastern neighbors. Since they are a combination of both areas culturally, it is hard to tell which system they will pick.
"Even as Europe wrestles over how to absorb the migrant tide, experts warn that the flood is likely to get worse as climate change becomes a driving factor." http://wp.me/P2dv5Z-1YS
The surge of migrants to Europe has another major contribution other than the Syrian War. Climate change cause food and water shortage to the region of middle-east. The intense droughts and flood are killing their agriculture ultimately lead them to find a food source somewhere else. It's like adding stress to more stress and now you have a massive problem that is showing no sign of stopping.
The location of the hotel makes a lot of sense. Mecca is an obvious tourist destination. Muslims from all over the world, make the sacred pilgrimage to the holy city. Those same people, are in need of accommodations once they arrive in the city. The economic potential of such a hotel is outstanding. It was also interesting to learn that Las Vegas currently has four of the five largest hotels in the world. Even with the building of this hotel, I do not see Las Vegas being displaced as the worlds premier tourist destination.
this is hardly surprising, with how many people go to Mecca in a year. Mecca is probably the largest single destination for religious tourism in the world, and it is the only city on earth where there are religious obligations to enter the city .
Although Mecca usually isn’t what comes to mind when I think about a place that gets a lot of tourists, the plans for building this hotel prove that it is. Since millions of Muslims make the pilgrimage to Mecca each year, it makes sense that they need such a large hotel to accommodate all of those people. This is telling of the infrastructure that in 2015 in Mecca— that it wasn’t sufficient enough to keep up with the influx of tourists. The fact that this hotel is supposed to have 10,000 rooms shows just how many people travel to Saudi Arabia every year. It also challenges the notion that many Americans have that travel is for pleasure, because in this case people are traveling in order to complete a holy pilgrimage. Another American thought that it challenges is that the Middle East is unsafe for travel. Millions of people would not flock to Mecca if the travel was actually that unsafe. The example of this hotel also shows how as the Christian world becomes more secular, the Muslim world continues to participate in religion.
The Rise and Fall of the Ottoman Empire can be clearly seen at the beginning and the end. They had a massive territory expansion at 1300 and it bloomed from there. from then to 1900 then only had some minor changes with some changes in territory. At the end, in 1900s was the most significant change with the Empire collapsing with the Republic of Turkey being established in 1923.
A fascinating look into the shifting nature of borders through history. Unfortunately it also reflects many atrocities that also occurred in those years. Geographically the Empire wouldn't last given its difficult to defend borders. Additionally its extremely conservative Political and Cultural nature made it nearly impossible for it to adapt to changing times in technology. Which is ironic in a way because it was their innovation that sparked the Empire and the seizure of Constantinople to begin with. Also it should perhaps be mentioned that the current nation of Turkeys borders are an unnatural creation on the part of the Turks when they were aware their Empire would collapse. This unfortunately also means this map hides events such as the Armenian Genocide to try and purify Anatolia so that the Turks could claim it as its sole homeland while abandoning the rest of the Empire (so in effect they consolidated to try and keep as much land as possible).
This is a very simple GIF map, but one that we can look at using other outside materials and really used to our advantage of seeing the every changing Middle Eastern Area. The Rise and Fall of the Ottoman empire is a key geographical and political fallout from the 1300's until what is now present day Turkey. When you examine the map and see how big the Empire eventually got and what lands it covers we can use this map to interpret some current conflicts like the one in Syria. Also nowadays we do not think of Turkey as a world power or even a regional power. However, it shows there past history as a world power and that can drive a country (see Russia) to wanting to regain that power. Will Turkey look to regain that power as well? What could they possibly to do to regain this power and how would that effect other Middle Eastern countries. We also can look at the map and realize that the region probably contains many people of Turkish acenstory and what effect does that have on political polices in certain countries that had previously been under the power of the Ottoman Empire.
A school that lays in ruins, hospitals and refugee camps under attack, and a city center with the size of Manhattan destroyed by shelling — these are some of the shocking details of a new United Nations report on the conflict in Syria, four years after in began.
Due to the current terror war in Syria, it has caused many people to flee to surrounding countries or countries where there is no terror and discrimination. This has caused them to be refugees or internally displaced persons.
The stupidity of this whole thing is the reparations and its cost. Its the injury and death tolls during the conflicts followed by the high cost to rebuild. One must ask is the war or conflicts worth it.
from the air the war looks like many historical photographs of bombings, and in this age of precision warfare it is somewhat disturbing that warfare can still look like this. this is a destruction of infrastructure on a scale unseen in the middle east since the Iran-Iraq war.
"Self-taught Iranian photographer gains rare access to shoot religious buildings as they've never been seen. It's a side of Iran the rest of the world doesn't normally get to see -- the kaleidoscopically brilliant interiors of the country's intricately designed mosques.With beautiful mosaics and stained glass framed by powerful architecture, the buildings are astounding."
This was one of my favorite articles. We usually are very used to seeing negative sides to the Middle East and this gave it a different spin. This shows breathtaking pictures of the Mosques in Iran. This architecture isn't like anything I've seen with all of the symmetry and colors. These photos were taken by a student and were not easily taken. You have to have an eye to capture moments like this and pictures like this are not always appreciated. the detail that went into creating and designing these mosques are really special and I would love to actually see something like this in person.
Amazing photos of these mosques. The detail and color in some of these mosques are extraordinary. This kind of brilliance in color is something that is unexpected in this part of the world where everything seems to be so bland and alike in color or style. Its surprising that the mosques don't let professional take pictures with certain equipment inside but let tourists take photos. I would understand if the light from a camera could cause damage to the art, but these are the people who will be able to share these beautiful pictures with the rest of the world and show that there is more to Iran than what the outside may think.
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